CALIFORNIA – There are 28 confirmed cases of coronavirus in California, which was announced by Governor Gavin Newsom in a press conference in Sacramento on Thursday.

A total of 33 Covid-19 cases tested positive, but five of the people have moved out of the state. Newsom said the spreading of the virus was “inevitable.”

A series of protocols are going into effect that were prepared in advance as the situation is escalating around the world. The state has been working with federal partners, the health care sector and with officials at the county level.

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On Thursday morning before the press conference Newsom spoke with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Newsom said there are 8,400 people currently being monitored for possible exposure.

Several hundred testing kits are being sent to the State of California, which includes surveillance and diagnostic testing. The tests are being expedited by the CDC to the state to expand the capacity to get ahead of the virus before it spreads further.

 

 

“No better resource state in America to address this issue head-on and no better team assembled that have taken account and responsibility from day one to meet this moment,” said Newsom.

California Department of Public Health Director Dr. Sonia Y. Angell said 24 of the cases were from repatriation flights, which means the travelers were sent back to the U.S. Additionally, seven of the cases are travel-related, and one is from person-to-person contact with a spouse living with an infected individual.

The last case came from an unknown source, according to Dr. Angell, who said it could be the first case of community transmission in the United States. The person is from Solano County and is being treated in Sacramento County. The infected person had no travel history and is not believed to have come into contact with someone who has a confirmed case.

According to the CDC the symptoms are:

  • Fever
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath
  • Rapid breathing
  • Sore throat
  • Runny nose